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The End of WWII & The Atomic Age

The End of WWII & The Atomic Age. Mr. Ermer U.S. History Honors Miami Beach Senior High. Allied Strategy. The Tehran Conference: FDR wants to meet with Stalin, the two meet with Churchill in Tehran, Iran U.S. & U.K. will attack France, U.S.S.R. will attack also

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The End of WWII & The Atomic Age

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  1. The End of WWII & The Atomic Age Mr. Ermer U.S. History Honors Miami Beach Senior High

  2. Allied Strategy • The Tehran Conference: FDR wants to meet with Stalin, the two meet with Churchill in Tehran, Iran • U.S. & U.K. will attack France, U.S.S.R. will attack also • Stalin promise to help U.S. against Japan, after Germany • Post-war international peace keeping organization • “D-Day”: Operation Overlord • Germans misjudge where invasion would come • Allies reinforce misconception by placing decoys • June 6, 1944: Invasion of Normandy • 7,000 ships (100,000+ soldiers) on five beaches • 4 of 5 went well, American Omaha Beach more difficult • Gen. Bradley leads forces, 2,500 dead, but victorious

  3. The Battle Continues • Past Normandy, battle continues in France • The Battle of the Bulge • Germans try one last effort to cut off Allied supplies/move • German lines bulge outwards by German border, surprise attack • General Eisenhower orders General Patton to the rescue • Weather prevents aircraft support, but then clears • German fuel supply interrupted, Americans break German lines • January 8, 1945 Germany pulls back

  4. Fall of the Third Reich • American and British forces liberate France • Soviet forces push toward Germany from the east • February 1945: Soviets are 35 miles outside Berlin • March 1945: American troops enter Germany • April 21: Soviets enter Berlin • April 30: Hitler commits suicide • May 7, 1945: Germany surrenders unconditionally • May 8, 1945: “V-E Day”—official end of European war

  5. War With Japan • April 12, 1945: FDR dies of stroke in GA • Vice-President Harry S Truman sworn in as president • Bombing of Tokyo had been unsuccessful • U.S. needed closer airfields to accurately bomb Tokyo: • Island of Iwo Jima is perfect location • One of the hardest fought battles in the pacific • “Uncommon valor was a common virtue”~ Admiral Nimitz • General Le May orders B-29s to “firebomb” • Napalm firebombs controversial b/c of civilian casualties

  6. War draws to a close… • Invasion of Okinawa • After firebombing, Japan not ready to surrender • Okinawa seen as perfect spot from which to ready invasion of the Japanese homeland • Japanese take defensive position in mountains • Japanese want surrender with conditions, U.S. refuses • No surrender with Hirohito remaining in power • Manhattan Project may offer way out of invasion • Szilard & Einstein petition FDR • FDR commissions study of atomic energy • Oppenheimer leads bomb team at Los Alamos, NM

  7. Hiroshima & Nagasaki • Truman faced with tough choice: • Use a new weapon with unknown effects, or • Invade Japan and lose countless American lives • Allies warn Japan of “prompt and utter destruction” • Japan does not reply to request for surrender • August 6, 1945: B-29 Enola Gay drops “Little Boy” atomic bomb on Japanese city of Hiroshima • August 9, 1945: “Fat Man” dropped on Nagasaki • Soviet Union joined war earlier the same day • Japan surrenders six days later—V-J Day

  8. Punishing The Enemy • U.S., U.K., U.S.S.R., & France form International Military Tribunal (IMT) to put Germans and Japanese leaders on trial for war crimes • Nuremberg Trials • 22 German leaders tried (3 freed, 7 imprisoned, 12 hanged) • In Japan, Emperor Hirohito allowed to remain in power • 18 Japanese imprisoned, 7 hanged • U.S. and U.K. hope to build a better world…

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